Bergen County Prosecutor John Molinelli announced on April 25 the arrest of Sebastian Jurkiewicz, 26, of East Rutherford, for a bank robbery on Nov. 26, 2007. The arrest came about after a joint investigation conducted by the Wallington and East Rutherford police departments, the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office’s Special Investigation Squad and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

According to the prosecutor’s office, on Nov. 26, 2007 at 5:09 p.m., a robbery occurred at the Chase Bank on 2 Mount Pleasant Ave., Wallington. During the incident, a man entered the bank and yelled "hands up, give me all the money." He then handed a bank employee a bag and demanded money be placed in it. At the time of the robbery, two female bank employees were the only people inside the bank.

The suspect did not display a weapon. He concealed his identity by covering his face with a bandanna, his head with a hooded sweatshirt and his hands with gloves. After getting $4,600, he fled on foot.

In recent weeks, leads were developed which identified Jurkiewicz as the person responsible for the robbery. On April 25 during the early morning hours, members of the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office and Wallington and East Rutherford police departments executed a search warrant on Jurkiewicz’s residence. He was not at home but was located later in Ridgefield. He was arrested on charges of robbery and possession of drug paraphernalia. According to the prosecutor’s office, the drug charges were the result of evidence found during the search of his home.

Jurkiewicz was scheduled to appear before Judge Harry Carroll on April 29. He was remanded to Bergen County Jail in default of $100,000 bail.

Wallington Detective Joseph Rock said he, along with Wallington Detective Anthony Milne, worked with East Rutherford Police Detective Todd Roth, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office to bring about Jurkiewicz’s arrest.

"I want to thank them all for all their help," he said.

Wallington Councilman Steve Adzima, who serves as the liaison to the Wallington Police Department, was pleased with the arrest.

"I would just like to praise the effort and diligence of the Wallington Police Department in keeping Wallington safe," he said. "This arrest proves we are a safe community."